Renowned music executive, Kenny Ogungbe, popularly known as Keke, has completed the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme at the age of 53.
Ogungbe, the founder of Kennis Music, shared photos from his Passing Out Parade (POP) on Thursday, which have since gone viral on social media.
Posting the photos on his Instagram page, the renowned broadcaster wrote: “NYSC graduation/POP today. Lagos/12C graduation day. To God be the glory.”
He participated in the Batch C Stream of the National Service and completed the exercise on Thursday, October 12, 2023.
However, the news of Ogungbe’s NYSC service completion has elicited various reactions from the public, especially on social media.
Some were surprised to discover that the 53-year-old had once been a Youth Corps member, while others speculated that this could be a sign of his intention to join politics. Under the NYSC Act, all graduates under the age of 30 are required to participate in the one-year mandatory national service scheme.
Rumours circulated that Baba Wan, as he is also fondly called, may be preparing to meet the eligibility requirements for a potential run in the 2027 general election. These speculations led to a series of jokes and memes about Baba Wan’s fashionable take on his NYSC uniform.
Kenny Ogungbe has not yet addressed the rumours regarding his potential political aspiration. Instead, many fans and netizens found amusement in seeing a youthful version of the veteran entertainer.
Ogungbe is the founder and eponym of the popular label Kennis Music, and is the CEO alongside Dayo “D1” Adeneye. They also own Kennis 104.1 FM, Lagos.
Together with Dayo Adeneye, also known as D1, Ogungbe hosted the music programme AIT Jamz, which aired on AIT in the late 1990s (later becoming PrimeTime Jamz on NTA).
He has worked with, shaped the careers of, or discovered ‘The Remedies’ (launching the solo careers of both Eedris Abdulkareem and Tony Tetuila), Sound Sultan, 2face Idibia (producing his first two solo albums) and Oritse Femi, among others.
In 2012, Ogungbe was appointed Managing Director of Raypower FM. He is also a Non-Executive Director, DAAR Communications Plc, owners of Raypower FMs and AIT.